Slideshow: Verizon IoT Report in Pictures

The Internet of Things (IoT) is already firmly entrenched in a growing number of forward-acting public and private sector organizations that are driving revenue and productivity, cutting costs and building new businesses around the data and capabilities IoT provides.

Revenue generation is the biggest factor impelling IoT growth, according to Verizon's annual "State of the Market: Internet of Things 2016 report." Whether they're using data collected from IoT sensors to create new offerings such as monitoring services or branching into entirely new businesses such as oyster farming, IoT empowers large and small organizations to cost-effectively compete or create new income sources, says Mark Bartolomeo, vice president of IoT Connected Solutions at Verizon, in an interview.

"We are seeing people get beyond the technology. They're moving beyond 'What problems are we solving?' to 'How can I use IoT to develop a better solution for my customers?' he says.

Read through the slideshow to discover some surprising results from the Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE: VZ) report, including examples of how organizations use IoT to boost revenue, reduce fraud and fight world hunger.

IoT gained legitimacy this year, according to Verizon, as organizations moved beyond pilots and integrated IoT devices, strategies and data into business plans. By 2020, there will be 30 billion connected devices, versus 25.6 billion in 2019 and only 9.7 billion 2014, the "State of the Market: Internet of Things 2016" reported.